We usually use superlative adjectives when comparing the attributes of someone or something to others, either in a collective group or among several individuals. When we use a superlative adjective in a sentence, we almost always precede it with what word?More...

Self-portraits have been made by artists for centuries, but it was not until the mid-1400s, when better quality mirrors became more available, that artists regularly began depicting themselves as the main subjects in their works. Because in them the artist is also the subject, self-portraits highlight the classic conflict between the artist's desire to produce an accurate representation of the subject and his desire to idealize him. Who are some of the most prolific self-portraitists?More...

In early May, Francisco Gonzales—a disturbed former member of the Philippine Olympic sailing team—bought a gun and life insurance and began talking about killing himself. He followed through on his threat during a flight to San Francisco, but he did more than just end his own life; he took the lives of all 44 people on board by shooting both the pilot and co-pilot, causing the plane to crash. What cockpit security regulation—adopted before the flight—only went into effect after the tragic crash?More...

Tagore was a Bengali poet, philosopher, artist, writer, and composer whose works reshaped Bengali literature and music in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His writings, which often exhibit rhythmic lyricism, colloquial language, and philosophical contemplation, received worldwide acclaim. He became Asia's first Nobel laureate when he received the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913. Knighted by the British government in 1915, Tagore resigned the honor four years later in protest of what?More...

Quotation of the Day

Treachery and violence are spears pointed at both ends; they wound those who resort to them worse than their enemies.

This date commemorates the birth of Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), the great poet, philosopher, social reformer, dramatist, and musician of Calcutta, India. In 1913, he was the first non-European to win the Nobel Prize for literature. Tagore's birthday is celebrated with a festival of his poetry, plays, music, and dance dramas. There are discussions at schools and universities of his ideas on education and philosophy, and screenings of films based on Tagore's short stories and novels made by filmmaker and Calcutta native, Satyajit Ray.More...

Even while tucked away in a testing lab in Colorado, the instrument picks up the sloshing of the oceans thousands of miles away. That's the kind of sensitive equipment that's about to go to Mars, where NASA's next mission will dig into the mysterious history ...More...

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